LOS ANGELES — Equality California (EQCA) has announced the receipt of a $250,000 grant from The California Endowment to educate and enroll at-risk and marginalized lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Californians in Affordable Care Act approved health care plans. This funding will be used for a campaign named “Health Happens With Equality,” with outreach up and down the state to reach thousands of uninsured LGBT Californians — helping many of them to obtain health insurance for the first time in their lives.
The “Health Happens With Equality” campaign will be administered through the Equality California Institute, the 501(c)3 arm of EQCA dedicated to educating LGBT people and the general public about issues that impact the LGBT community and our allies.
“LGBT Americans experience health disparities and are more likely to be uninsured or underinsured, but thanks to the Affordable Care Act, it’s a new day. Beginning in January 2014, all Americans will have access to quality, affordable coverage through the new Health Insurance Marketplace — where they can begin to shop for and easily compare health insurance plans,” said Herb K. Schultz, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Region IX Director and an LGBT appointee in the Obama Administration.
“EQCA’s work to connect California’s LGBT population with this new marketplace will be invaluable in educating Californians and providing them with coverage,” Schultz added.
“Health care can mean the difference between life and death, and this grant from The California Endowment gives us the ability to literally save the lives of some of the most marginalized amongst us,” said John O’Connor, EQCA executive director. “We are very grateful to the California Endowment for the opportunity to do this important work.”
“LGBT Californians were the pioneers of patients’ rights,” said Daniel Zingale, senior vice president at the California Endowment. “It makes sense for Equality California to be in the vanguard of today’s historic opportunity to improve the health of our state.”
The California Endowment is a private foundation dedicated to education, expanding health access, and health equality. Through their program Health Happens Here, they fund grassroots efforts to connect the diverse population of California with quality health care, with the belief that the biggest improvement in health outcomes can be achieved by increasing access to traditionally marginalized populations.
